Best Black Friday robot vacuum deals

Amazon is discounting iRobot’s new budget line, the i5 and j5, by up to 42 percent this week. I’ve not tested these new bots yet, but as an upgrade to my top budget pick, the Roomba i3 Evo (which is hard to find right now), adding mopping and a sleeker self-empty base, the Roomba i5 Plus is a great buy at $349 (down from $549.99). The new Roomba j5 Plus adds AI-powered obstacle avoidance, so it could be worth the extra $150 if your floors are more cluttered than clean. It’s $499 at Amazon, down from $799.99.

The very good Dreametech D10 Plus robot vacuum and mop, my pick for the best budget self-empty robot vacuum with mapping and mopping, is down to $279.99, a 30 percent cut for Black Friday. It’s one of the cheapest options you’ll find, and it includes an auto-empty dock, mapping, and virtual keep-out zones, although it is prone to getting stuck on cords and cables. Read my review. The Shark Matrix Plus 2-in-1 is $399.99, almost half its original price of $699.99 for Black Friday at Sharkclean.com and Amazon. This is a great buy for a budget robot vacuum that can mop and empty its own bin, map your home, and keep out of an area you don’t want it to go. You have to swap out the mopping bin manually when you want it to mop, though, and it only self-empties when vacuuming, not mopping. Read my review.The Roborock Q5 Pro is $319.98, down from $429.99 at Amazon. An excellent mid-range vacuum, it packs 5,200 Pa suction power and two rubber roller brushes that are great at picking up pet hair. It’s not fancy, but with a huge 770ml bin with big wheels to get up on higher-pile carpets, it’s a good option for families with pets. The Plus version is also on sale for $479.98 and adds a self-empty dock that automatically empties the robot’s bin when it’s full. Read my review.

Another robot vacuum/mop with a multi-function dock, the Ecovacs Deebot X2 Omni is under $1,000, with on-page coupon. Selling for $999.99 at Amazon, down from $1,499.99, this is the lowest price I’ve seen on Ecovacs’ flagship robot. It doesn’t remove its mops like the Dreame, but it does lift them 15mm to clear carpets, and its square shape means it gets into edges and corners very well. Its hulking Omni station features hot water mop washing, hot air drying, auto dustbin emptying, and water tank refilling, and it has AI-powered obstacle avoidance, so it can dodge everything from pet waste and cables to socks.Ecovacs’ lower-priced Deebot T20 Omni is $400 off at Amazon, down to $699.99. This is a very good price for a robot vacuum that can do much of what the more expensive X2 Omni can do, just with lower suction, lower mop-lifting, and less effective obstacle avoidance.

The Yeedi Cube Robot Vacuum and Mop is $200 off, down to $499.99 at Amazon. This is the lowest you can spend right now on a robot vacuum with a multi-function charging base / dock that can empty its bin and refill its mop while also cleaning and drying itself. Read my review.